On Thursday the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) continued its disappointing run and fell a sizeable 0.8% to 6,128.7 points.
Will the market be able to bounce back to finish the week on a high? Here are five things to watch:
ASX futures pointing higher.
The Australian share market looks set to bounce back from yesterday's heavy decline with a push higher this morning. According to the latest SPI futures, the market is expected to open the day 0.44% or 27 points higher on Friday. This follows a positive night of trade on Wall Street which saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average rise 0.6%, the S&P 500 climb 0.5%, and the Nasdaq storm 0.75% higher.
Oil prices pull back.
The strong run in oil prices came to an end overnight and could potentially weigh on the shares of Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) today. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price fell 2.2% to US$68.81 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price dropped 1.7% to US$78.38 a barrel. Concerns that emerging market crises and trade disputes could dent demand led to the selloff.
Shares going ex-dividend.
More shares are due to go ex-dividend this morning. These include global defence contractor Austal Limited (ASX: ASB), adventure tourism company Experience Co Ltd (ASX: EXP), fashion retailer Noni B Limited (ASX: NBL), and healthcare and aged care service provider Paragon Care Ltd (ASX: PGC).
IOOF Holdings to sell Corporate Trust business.
A late announcement on Thursday reveals that IOOF Holdings Limited (ASX: IFL) has agreed to sell its AET Corporate Trust business to Sargon Capital for a total purchase consideration of $51.6 million. This appears to be a good deal for IOOF as AET Corporate Trust's post-tax contribution to its underlying net profit after tax for the year to June 30 2018 was just $1.1 million. Management expects the deal to complete at the end of October.
Mining giants push higher again.
Thanks largely to a lift in iron ore and copper prices, the US-listed shares of BHP Billiton Limited (ASX: BHP) and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) rose again overnight. The NYSE-listed shares of BHP climbed 0.5% and Rio's NYSE-listed shares climbed 0.3% higher.
